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A Double Blessing

by Ken Barnes  
4/09/2024 / Christian Living

After all, what gives us hope and joy, and what will be our proud reward and crown as we stand before our Lord Jesus when he returns? It is you! Yes, you are our pride and joy. 1 Thessalonians 2:19-20 (NLT)

When we get to heaven, there will be a twofold reward: being in the presence of our Lord and the righteous pride we feel about those we have won for Christ or nurtured and encouraged to love and serve him.

I have two daughters, and when they were young, I attended all the group presentations in which they participated. I took note of the other parents. When their child was next to do a solo or recitation, the anticipation started to rise in the parents. Momentarily, they were out in the aisle taking a picture. When one of my daughters was next to do her thing, my expectancy peaked, and I jumped out into the aisle to take my picture. If she remembered her lines, she was smart like her mom and dad. If she forgot them, she was cute. It was a no-lose situation. She did not have to be good because she was mine.

1 Thessalonians is Paul’s letter to the Church that he had brought to birth by God’s grace. This letter is dripping with Paul’s parental love for those who had come to know Christ through his ministry. Paul uses the imagery of a loving mother in 1 Thessalonians 2:7 NLT, “but we have proved to be gentle among you, as a nursing mother tenderly cares for her own children.” God had brought these children into the Kingdom of God, but Paul loved them like his own.

So, dear brothers and sisters, take heart, whether you have been a preacher or a teacher, an encourager, a comforter, a loving parent, or an example of Christ-like living; some plant, some water, others harvest, but the reward is the same. Nothing done for Christ ever done in vain. One day, you will receive a double blessing. First, you will be in the presence of the lover of your soul. Second, you will be with those whose souls you have loved. They will be your trophies and your source of pride and joy.

PS--Send this to your spiritual fathers or mothers.

I worked for seventeen years as a missionary with Youth With A Mission. My missionary work has taken me to Mexico, Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Spain, and Ukraine. I hold a Masters of Education in curriculum and instruction from Virginia Commonwealth University. [email protected]

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